John Turner knew it would take the world to beat Gwynedd Mercy and have his Nazareth Academy basketball team advance. And although it didn’t come close to happening, this particular Pandas squad still means the world to their coach.

Brendan Horan will be the first to admit that the offensive system in place at Archbishop Ryan is somewhat of an acquired taste. When a visiting reporter generously described the X’s and O’s of Bernie Rogers’ basketball playbook as “not the sexiest in the Catholic League,” Rogers’ most talented player smiled and began chuckling.

For Jill Bovitt, Brittany Colombo and Taylor Lichtenhahn, they wanted to sign on the dotted line together. Now that they’ve accomplished that, they can shift their focus into doing something else special as one: win states.